hi, i’m jasmine!
I write about AI and Silicon Valley culture: not only what technologists build, but why they do it, and how tech makes people feel. I spend my time interviewing AI researchers, eavesdropping at SF house parties, and synthesizing how frontier technology will impact society at large. I dub my approach an “anthropology of disruption.”
Here’s a starter pack for my work. I publish essays here every two weeks, and am also a contributor at The Atlantic:
My most popular Substack posts are on Chinese tech, AI populism, Claude Code, and SF’s gold rush vibes.
I’ve reported stories on peptides and AI’s labor impacts for the NYT, LLM writing for The Atlantic, and defense-tech for the SF Standard.
I’ve guested on podcasts like Odd Lots, Hard Fork, Sinica, and elsewhere.
You can find a full portfolio here.
Paid subscribers get how-to guides, article gift links, event invites, and priority email replies, plus my deep gratitude (each piece takes ~20-60 hours to research and write). You can support my work for $10/month or $70/year.
If you have story tips, reading recommendations, or points of contention, shoot me an email! I can’t reply to everyone but do my best.
about me
Until 2025, I was a product manager at Substack, where I spent 4 years building our first community features, advanced publishing, and podcast/video tools. I’ve also worked on AI policy at Mozilla, Schmidt Futures, and the International Climate Development Institute in Taipei.
I cofounded Reboot and Kernel Magazine, a nonprofit publication by and for technologists. I graduated from Stanford with a degree in Sociology, and am based in beautiful San Francisco.
thank you
This project has been supported by Omidyar Network’s Reporters in Residence, Emergent Ventures, (m)otherboard, and paid subscribers.
I’m grateful to be able to work independently, without any external editorial oversight. I do not consider myself part of any ‘camp’—AI critics, EA, pro-tech, whatever. I prefer to talk to everyone then make up my mind by myself.
This means that individual paid subscribers are what keeps this going. If you’ve learned from, resonated with, or been challenged by my work, consider a paid subscription. (The second-best thing you can do is share this Substack with a friend.)
Now is the best time in the world to be a writer, and I’m so grateful to get to do this. Thank you!
— Jasmine Sun
